One question that comes up quite often among consumers is what’s the difference between an air conditioner and an air cooler?  These are both popular appliances during the summer, but there is a considerable difference between the two.  While they sound similar in name, the seeming small difference between the two can result in the difference between a very cool room or apartment, or a humid room that’s barely any better than the outside temperatures you’re trying to cool it from.  Knowing the difference between these two is important, otherwise you may think you’re getting a great deal only to find out you should have spent the extra $40 to get the right machine.

The biggest difference between the two most often comes up with the portable units.  A portable air conditioner is a machine that not only cools the air but it “conditions” the air by pulling humidity out of the air.  This is critical, because it conditions the air and cools down an entire apartment or room.  In climates that have humid summers, it’s extremely important to condition the air if you really want it to stay cool.  Air coolers only cool the air – they do not pull humidity and liquid from the air.  For dry climates this is no problem, but in humid summer climates this is a big issue.

A portable air cooler, on the other hand, only cools the air but doesn’t pull humidity out of the air.  Because of this you don’t have a water tray to pull out, but it also might not work as well in cooling the air.  This means that portable air coolers will often be cheaper, but they also are less effective in climates that aren’t dry heat.  It’s extremely important for consumers to know the difference between the two.